Producer: Zhang Dajun

‘Black Coal, Thin Ice’ is one of those films that are encountered once in a while that are much easier to admire than feel warm and fuzzy about.

‘Chinese Zodiac’ gives Jackie Chan fans (including me), who had been awaiting its arrival especially eagerly, very little to get excited about.

‘Hot Summer Days’ manages the feat that so many productions using multiple stories flatly fail with, namely making each of the plot strands interesting rather than just using a few as killers and the rest as fillers.

‘Journey To The West: Conquering The Demons’ is a solid fantasy film that retains a fair amount of that Stephen Chow magic.

‘Love In Space’ doesn’t quite perform with the same surprising wit of ‘Hot Summer Days’, but is remarkably successful given the elements of deja-vu that pop up throughout.

‘Painted Skin 2’ ramps up the CGI spectacle and melodramatic romance, all but forgets the action and excitement and thus is a rather hollow but undeniable pretty to look at fantasy.

The style of this sequel is just as frenetic as its forerunner, combining visual cues from video games and anime along with the steam-punk vision of 19th century China.

Despite being as absurdly hyperactive as a coffee junkie with St. Vitus’ Dance, ‘Tai Chi Zero’ is fun and snappy for most of its running time.

‘Tracing Shadow’ – though by no means as bad as that tirade – does fall foul of the flaws of the weaker films rather than embrace the qualities of the greats.